Number of children referred for adoption in Shropshire doubles

A report to Shropshire Council’s cabinet says there were 61 children referred into the service in 2020/21 – a “significant increase” on 29 the previous year.

However the report, by executive director of people Tanya Miles, says there was also an increase in the number of households being approved as prospective adopters.

Delays in the adoption process as a result of the pandemic are also highlighted, though Ms Miles says this will be more evident in next year’s figures.

Meanwhile a separate report on the fostering service says the pandemic has led to an increase in the number of looked after children in the authority’s care, but there has been no corresponding increase in the number of foster carers.

As a result, the council has warned that there could soon be a shortage in the available foster placements.

The adoption service report says: “Covid-19 has impacted on the delivery of statutory adoption functions.

“Although this is reflected in some of the performance data for 2020/21, the impact of this is most likely to be felt in the reporting period 21/22 given the impact Covid has had on those children in the adoption process at that time.

“Those children in the cohort of 20/21, will have already been through several statutory processes pre-pandemic and it may only be the latter part of their adoption journey that has experienced some delay.”

The report says the pandemic has caused delays in children being placed, care proceedings and the completion of adoption cases in court.

Of the 61 children referred into the service over the year, 26 have had a plan of adoption confirmed, up from 23 the previous year. Thirteen children have been placed for adoption and eight have been adopted.

A supplementary report from Together4Children, which has been the regional adoption agency for Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin, Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent since September 2020, says the service is actively seeking families for 12 children, “eight of whom have been waiting for a significant period”.

It says: “These children include older children, children in sibling groups where it would be detrimental to separate them and a child with significant health needs.”

Ms Miles’ report goes on to say that the service “has sadly had one adoption disruption this year”.

There were 33 adopter households approved in the course of the year, six more than in the previous year.

The report says: “Whilst the recruitment of adopters has proved successful, there is a need to support adopters to consider a wider pool of children and in particular our priority children.”

It adds that there is also a need to “support more adopters to consider early permanence placements”, where young children who may need to be adopted are placed early on with potential adopters who are also approved foster carers.

The fostering service report also details the challenges that have been presented by the pandemic.

That report, also by Ms Miles, says: “In line with the increase in children looked after by Shropshire Council, there has been a significant increase in work for the fostering service, especially from a connected carer perspective.”

Connected carers are relatives of the child they are fostering, as opposed to ‘mainstream’ foster carers.

The report continues: “Despite the increase in work, the service has succeeded in recruiting more mainstream foster carers to provide care for children looked after in comparison to last year.”

A total of 13 new mainstream foster carer households were approved in 20/21, but 13 others resigned, meaning there was “no net gain in placement capacity”.

This was in addition to 15 resignations from connected carer households. The report says mainstream fosterer resignations were mainly due to retirement, while some moved to a an independent fostering agency (IFA).

Connected carers often resign after securing a legal order such as special guardianship, or when the child or children they are caring for return home.

“It is imperative there is sufficient focus on the growth of fostering as a resource to provide suitable and safe placements for children looked after,” the report says.

“The risk is, if there is not sufficient focus on the growth of fostering services, we will be unable to provide sufficient mainstream foster placements.

“Whilst a high proportion of children looked after are being cared for in Shropshire placements, there is a growing number of children and young people placed in IFA placements.

“The risk is, if there is not sufficient focus on the growth of fostering services, we will continue to see high numbers of children placed in IFA placements.

“There are potentially risks arising from children and young people feeling alienated or isolated when they are placed at a distance from their birth family, education placement, social and leisure activities, we need to do all we can to place child and young people in local placements.”

Cabinet will receive both reports at a meeting next Wednesday, November 10.